Photo Descriptors - The NWU-CMMS Equatorial Sundial Aerialview.jpg - Aerial photograph, one-foot resolution color ortho-imagery, flown 17 April 2002. Step 1. Installing the Base No. 1 - Tractor-trailer arrives from Cold Spring, MN; driver unhitching load (two pallets). No. 2 - Truck driver unhitching load of two pallets (front-to-back): granite base; granite dial plate and stainless steel gnomon. No. 3 - Crane lifting granite plates from the truck bed. No. 4 - Side view of crane lifting granite base. No. 5 - Preparing to seat the granite base on concrete pier; dry ice packs used to enable even settling of base on pier while providing space to remove lifting slings. No. 6 - Seating the base on pier; blocks of dry ice in place. Black rubbery sealant (silicone?) used to fasten base to pier. Step 2. Installing the Dial Plate & Gnomon No. 7 - Phil Oehm, Milacek Monument Co., supervises lifting dial plate from tractor-trailer truck bed for temporary storage. No. 8 - Milacek truck; using wooden boards for traction. No. 9 - Preparing to lift the dial plate and move it to the base (see photo No. 10). No. 10 - Base and transit, facing south. No. 11 - Truck backing into place. No. 12 - Truck getting stuck on the slick boards. No. 13 - John Deere tractor pulling truck. No. 14 - Checking slings before moving dial plate. No. 15 - Lifting dial plate from Milacek truck bed. No. 16 - Dr. Peter Morin, M.D., double-checking computations for properly siting sundial. No. 17 - Using wooden pallet to reposition dial plate and slings. No. 18 - Milacek crane holding dial plate in position. No. 19 - Using a plywood jig with the appropriate angles of a right triangle (~49d, 90d, ~41d) to align the dial plate; welding steel plate to gnomon. No. 20 - Welding steel plate to gnomon. No. 21 - Finished view #1, facing northwest. No. 22 - Finished view #2, facing north. No. 23 - Finished view #3, facing south. The dial was set with 12:26 pointing down to correct for the difference in longitude between the sundial location and the Central Time Zone Standard Time Meridian (90d W). No. 24 - Phil Oehm, Milacek Monument Co., Bill Norris, NWU Vice President of Admissions, and Twyla Hanson, NWU Grounds & Arboretum Consultant, shown left-to-right. No. 25 - Finished view #4, facing due west. The gnomon points toward the Celestial North Pole. No. 26 - Finished view #5, facing due east. Gnomon inclined at ~41-degree angle; dial plate inclined at ~49-degree complementary angle. No. 27 - Finished view #6, facing north. Transit in view. Erik Hubl describes how the transit was used to properly site the sundial: 'It was a clear night in February. I found the center of the 5-foot diameter concrete pier, set my transit on top and centered on that point. I sited Polaris and waited for lower culmination. Next, I placed stakes at the four cardinal directions about 30 feet away, the one due south being the most important. On base setting day. I set up on the south stake and sited north. That helped us align the base while the crane lowered it onto the pier. The dry ice sublimed evenly. The following Wednesday, I again set up on the south stake and aligned the gnomon as the dial plate was slid down on the gnomon. My wooden jig (see photo No. 19) then helped us with the dial plate angle of inclination. All instruments have some error, right? I think the east-west direction of the equatorial plane has one-degree of error in it, but the north-south direction is pretty good. Should have had a second transit [to check east-west alignment].' Time Checks - Testing the Accuracy of the Sundial No. 28 - 19 JUN 1998, 08:05:00 CDT. View from the north (facing south). No. 29 - 19 JUN 1998, 08:05:15 CDT. No. 30 - 19 JUN 1998, 08:07:00 CDT. No. 31 - 17 JUN 1998, 13:27:30 CDT. Hour lines radiate from the exact center of the dial face; tell time by estimating the center of the gnomon shadow. Local Solar Noon = 13:27:30 CDT, 17 JUN 1998. No. 32 - 17 JUN 1998, 13:27:45 CDT. No. 33 - 17 JUN 1998, 19:43:00 CDT. No. 34 - 17 JUN 1998, 19:43:15 CDT. No. 35 - Lower dial face. No. 36 - Lower dial face. Commemorative plaques appear on south side of granite base. No. 37 - 22 DEC 1998, 12:26:00 CST. No. 38 - 22 DEC 1998, 12:30:00 CST. No. 39 - 22 DEC 1998, 12:30:15 CST. No. 40 - 22 SEP 1998, 19:00:00 CDT. No. 41 - 22 SEP 1998, 19:00:15 CDT. No. 42 - 22 SEP 1998, 19:13:00 CDT. No. 43 - 22 SEP 1998, 19:13:15 CDT. Inspirational Thoughts & Photographs No. 44 - 19 SEP 1998. Gnomon shadow, morning sunlight. By a shadow I explain the heavens. (Inscription, CMMS commemorative plaque.) No. 45 - 22 SEP 1998, ~19:01 CDT. Gnomon shadow, evening sunlight. Time is infinite; our time is not. Carpe diem! No. 46 - 22 SEP 1998, ~19:10 CDT. Sunset, September Equinox. Sunrise, sunset. The passing of a day is a metaphor for the passing of one's life. No. 47 - 22 DEC 1998, ~12:31 CST. Sundial gnomon blocks solar disk, revealing a heavenly sky covered by thin, wispy cirrostratus clouds. Look up and remember the man who inspired you to appreciate the beauty of the sky! Hitchcock's Gallery - The Man Behind the Shadows No. 48 - 19 SEP 1998, 09:05:00 CDT. Morning sunlight. No. 49 - 22 SEP 1998, ~19:05 CDT. Sunset, September Equinox. No. 50 - 22 DEC 1998, ~12:31 CST. Solar noon. No. 51 - Hyde Memorial Observatory. Erik Hubl studied engineering and computer science at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. He is currently the Computer & GIS Records Supervisor at the Lancaster County Assessor/Register of Deeds office. Mr. Hubl has an active 'surveyor in training' certification and holds a private pilot's license. He is the Chairman of the Board for the Hyde Memorial Observatory located in Lincoln, NE and is an active member of the Prairie Astronomy Club. Carroll Moore was one of the 'founding fathers' of the Hyde Observatory. Moore also served as director of the NWU Jensen Planetarium from 1963 until his retirement.